Deals for Apple Custom Radio Service 'Nowhere Near to Being Completed'

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Back in early September, news broke in several publications about Apple's plans for a Pandora-like custom radio service, with the company reportedly seeking to arrange deals with music labels to allow more flexibility than permitted under the mandatory licensing used by Pandora. At the time, a launch was said to be "months away".

By late October, reports were indicating that talks remained in limbo with Apple and the major music labels remaining far apart in their licensing offers, although Apple was reportedly still hoping for an early 2013 launch.

As part of a report noting that Pandora's stock plunged yesterday after issuing weak guidance for the upcoming quarter, CNET says that Apple still has not made any significant progress with the major music labels.

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The rumors continue to swirl but multiple music industry sources have told CNET in recent weeks that the deal that Apple has offered for iRadio has left the major record companies -- Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group -- cold.

My sources say that, at a minimum, a deal with all the majors is nowhere near to being completed. Even if Apple sweetens its offer or the big labels change their mind tomorrow, these deals take a while to put to bed. Even in the best case scenario, it will still be a while before we see iRadio.

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Eddy Cue has long been Apple's "master negotiator" for content deals, a role that he has reportedly filled with a calm yet firm demeanor that has made him very well respected in the business. As Apple's content empire has grown, Cue's role has expanded to the point where it now encompasses the iTunes Store, App Store, iCloud, iBookstore, iAd, Siri, and Maps.

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Back in early September, news broke in several publications about Apple's plans for a Pandora-like custom radio service, with the company reportedly seeking to arrange deals with music labels to allow more flexibility than permitted under the mandatory licensing used by Pandora. At the time, a launch was said to be "months away".

By late October, reports were indicating that talks remained in limbo with Apple and the major music labels remaining far apart in their licensing offers, although Apple was reportedly still hoping for an early 2013 launch.

As part of a report noting that Pandora's stock plunged yesterday after issuing weak guidance for the upcoming quarter, CNET says that Apple still has not made any significant progress with the major music labels.Eddy Cue has long been Apple's "master negotiator" for content deals, a role that he has reportedly filled with a calm yet firm demeanor that has made him very well respected in the business. As Apple's content empire has grown, Cue's role has expanded to the point where it now encompasses the iTunes Store, App Store, iCloud, iBookstore, iAd, Siri, and Maps.

Eh. I don't see why people would want to switch over. Yeah, it's Apple-built -- big deal. Comparison: maps. If Google maps was still around, as is Apple maps, I'll bet 99% of those people will stick with Google - they've had more time to develop it. Same with Pandora and all the other companies out there doing this.

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Who cares? Apple cannot even keep their damn IOS 6 and Mac apps stores running so users can grab their updates. 2 days in a row. I have no faith they can firmly offer any additional services when the one they offer now sucks so freaking bad.

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I only ever use iTunes to sync my iPhone now. Spotify Premium is lightyears ahead of iTunes. Comes with streaming of pretty much all music ever on demand, internet radio and a great app for iPhone. iTunes Match seems fiddly and a waste of time by comparison.

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Maybe with this time, they can change their plan and make something more Spotify like, instead of Pandora like.

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I cant see Apple being able to match Spotify. The prices, the signed on artists, etc - there's very little room for improvement with Spotify, and I dont think many would really move to an iTunes version just because it's Apple.

I stopped using iTunes about 2 years ago, and have used Spotify daily since. The only 1 feature I could even think of wanting is a 'mini' player like the new iTunes has

For me- there's no point buying stuff on iTunes anymore. Spotify is cheap enough to just use as-is, and with the speed of mobile internet access, you can still have a decent quality stream whilst on the go, and can still keep a copy of it on your iphone/ipad without owning the song as part of your spotify playlist.

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I'd rather have a DAB radio chip. The US is very behind when it comes to digital Radio. It's quite widely used in Europe and Asia now, and is far superior.

That being said, it's still not really needed. I cant comment about other countries, but in the UK all major and most minor radio stations belong to a consortium, and they basically fund an online radio service for all stations, including the BBC. They also share a mobile app, meaning you can listen to pretty much any radio station in the country wherever you are.

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I cant see Apple being able to match Spotify. The prices, the signed on artists, etc - there's very little room for improvement with Spotify, and I dont think many would really move to an iTunes version just because it's Apple.

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I would. If Apple could offer a yearly subscription to have stream any music from iTunes and be able to move things to listen to offline, I would sign up in a heartbeat. Having something like that integrated into OSX and iOS would be so much better than what Spotify is offering for desktop and mobile apps

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I would. If Apple could offer a yearly subscription to have stream any music from iTunes and be able to move things to listen to offline, I would sign up in a heartbeat. Having something like that integrated into OSX and iOS would be so much better than what Spotify is offering for desktop and mobile apps

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So if Apple charged more than Spotify, or didn't have as many artists signed up to it, you'd still sign up just because 'its Apple'?

(also, FYI iTunes is no more 'integrated' into OS X than any other app you would download)

macrumors 6502

For me- there's no point buying stuff on iTunes anymore. Spotify is cheap enough to just use as-is, and with the speed of mobile internet access, you can still have a decent quality stream whilst on the go, and can still keep a copy of it on your iphone/ipad without owning the song as part of your spotify playlist.

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Yup, same here. My oldest daughter alone was spending about $250 per year or more on iTunes cards, just for music. Since Spotify, me, my wife and daughter spend $10 per month and utilize offline playlists. Works like a charm and saves $$.

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macrumors 6502

I cant see Apple being able to match Spotify. The prices, the signed on artists, etc - there's very little room for improvement with Spotify, and I dont think many would really move to an iTunes version just because it's Apple.

I stopped using iTunes about 2 years ago, and have used Spotify daily since. The only 1 feature I could even think of wanting is a 'mini' player like the new iTunes has

For me- there's no point buying stuff on iTunes anymore. Spotify is cheap enough to just use as-is, and with the speed of mobile internet access, you can still have a decent quality stream whilst on the go, and can still keep a copy of it on your iphone/ipad without owning the song as part of your spotify playlist.

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I want to rely solely on Spotify, I pay for premium, but I hate the fact that in the last 2 months every major artist album release I've anticipated wasn't available on release day and still isn't.

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